A Dead Man's Kiss
by snoozin81
Summary: When the newspaper reports that Peter's been murdered Manny finds herself having a hard time believing it.


There was a yellow tent to the full moon that hung high in the starless sky, like an all seeing eye watching her every move. The autumn wind whipped furiously at her blowing an array of fallen leaves around her feet. She shivered further into her jacket kicking herself for wearing the short blue jean skirt that left her legs bare instead of the jeans Emma had recommended. Her best friend had been right about the temperature dropping drastically after the sun had set, threatening the first snow of the season.

Somewhere in the distance a second set of footsteps echoed against the sidewalk. The hair on the back of Manny's neck stood straight up at the realization that she was no longer alone. She sped up, straining to hear over her rapid heartbeat. There it was again, closer. She spun around searching the empty street behind her but only shadows danced in between the street lights.

Swallowing around the lump forming in her throat Manny urged her feet to keep moving, praying she wouldn't trip or fall like the big breasted blondes in all those horror movies Emma forced her to watch. She didn't like to be afraid. She didn't like the way the adrenaline felt surging through her blood stream. Concentrating on each step she pressed on, her eyes down cast to her white Keds. Left, right, left, right, it echoed in her head with each fall of her own footsteps. She was too lost in the rhythm to see the dark figure standing in front of her until she'd run right smack into him. A cry escaped her getting lost in the sound of a nearby dog's howl.

"Watch where you're going," a slightly familiar voice growled.

Manny's eyes immediately traveled up to meet the gaze of Peter Stone, only his skin was almost transparent in the pale light and his eyes which were normally blue seemed to glow an eerie red. "P…Peter," she stammered taking a step back. "Are you okay?"

His laughter filled the air nearly sucking the breath right out of her. A shiver ran up her spine as his lips cocked to the side and his pupils bored into hers. "I've never been better," he replied, his voice calm, flat. "It's a beautiful night isn't it Manny."

The way he emphasized her name sent her another step backwards. The wicked grin lacing his lips widened and the tip of his tongue jutted out, tracing the line of them. "What's wrong Manny? You look frightened," he added moving closer.

Manny shook her head trying to think quickly, "No it's just…my dad's a total tyrant and I'm already late for curfew. I'll be grounded until the millennium if I don't get home."

"That's too bad," he practically whispered, leaning in and resting his lips against her ear. "I'll be seeing you," he added.

She nodded despite the fact that it sounded more like a threat than a casual 'see you later'. Stepping around him she quickly moved towards the other side of the road only glancing back long enough to make sure he wasn't following. He was watching, teeth gleaming porcelain in the moonlight. Manny quickened her pace but forced herself not to run. She wouldn't give Peter the satisfaction of knowing he'd gotten to her. Not again.

**-0-0- **

A bombard of whispers greeted Manny Monday morning when she stepped through the front doors of Degrassi Community School. "Did you hear about Peter," Emma asked in a hushed voice as Manny weaved her way over to the locker they shared.

She shook her head no as she spun the combination lock. "I saw him Saturday night did something happen," she questioned, brows furrowed in concern.

"Are you sure you saw him Saturday night," Emma asked looking at Manny in complete confusion. "The news said the cops found him early Saturday evening in an abandoned building down by the old railway tracks…dead."

Manny felt the color drain from her face, Peter was dead but that wasn't possible. She shook her head profusely, "I saw him Saturday night Em, on my way home from the party. He looked like death but he was walking and talking."

Emma shrugged her mouth poised to protest when Toby came rushing up waving a newspaper at them. "Did you guys see this," he cried thrusting it at them and pointing to the front page story.

Manny took the paper reading the article,

_Degrassi student found dead Saturday at 4:50 P.M. in the old railroad district. All signs point to an animal attack due to the puncture wounds located on the boys neck. Peter Stone was pronounced dead on the scene and later transported to South Toronto Medical Center for an autopsy. It was there that the body went missing. Investigators currently have no leads but are actively pursuing the case._

The paper began to shake along with Manny's hands. It didn't make since. She'd seen Peter, she'd spoken to him. He'd been very much alive. How could this be?

"Manny? Are you okay?" Emma asked placing a comforting hand on the brunette's shoulder.

She nodded handing the paper back to Toby. "I…I must have been mistaken about the day, that's all. Poor Peter."

"Poor Peter's right. The lady on the news this morning said it looked like he'd been bitten by a rabid dog or something," Toby explained completely oblivious to the fact that all the color had left Manny's face and the girl looked like she was about to pass out.

"Maybe you should go to the nurse," Emma suggested.

Toby finally looked up, his jaw dropping in surprise at Manny's ghastly look. "What's wrong you look like you've seen a ghost?"

The word 'ghost' echoed through her head as her friends disappeared behind a curtain of darkness. The next thing Manny knew she was waking up to the smell of ammonia, bright florescent lights burning her eyes, and causing her to squint.

"What…what happened," she stammered trying to sit up. Dizziness overtook her and she was forced to lie back down.

"Easy, Miss Santos, you passed out. Gave your friends quite a scare," the nurse replied with a soft, friendly smile.

It came rushing back in a blinding frenzy, the news paper, Peter, loosing consciousness. Manny swallowed squeezing her eyes shut but the image of Peter, skin glowing and eyes on fire caused them to fly back open. The world was spinning in hyper speed and her stomach lurched threatening to expel the sausage and egg burrito she'd had for breakfast.

"I think I should call your parents," the nurse offered. "You don't have a fever but you don't look very well either."

"No!" Manny practically shouted. "I'm fine, really." She sat up more slowly, forcing herself not to grimace as the nausea hit her once again.

The nurse nodded even though her face clearly stated she wasn't buying Manny's lie. "If you're sure you're fine then you should head back to class," she instructed as she scribbled her signature on a hall pass and then handed it to Manny. "But if you feel faint again I'd suggest going home."

"Yes ma'am," Manny replied with a weak smile accepting the slip of paper and grabbing her book bag from the corner. "Thank you," she added before slipping out the door and into the empty hallway.

Without her fellow students milling around she was able to hear the soles of her sneakers smack against the tiled floors. It reminded her of Saturday night a shiver ripped its way down her spine and she sped up. She ducked into her English class slightly out of breath earning an angry glare from Mrs. Kwan and a concerned glance from Mia on the other side of the room.

Manny forced a smile. "Sorry," she apologized to Kwan. "I wasn't feeling well this morning. I've been in the nurse's office." She handed over the late slip.

Kwan nodded satisfied with Manny's explanation then turned back to the class and continued her lecture on modern literature versus classic literature. Manny took her seat next to Mia ignoring the other girls questioning stare as she tried to concentrate on the lesson.

Eventually her eyes drifted from the lesson up to the clock by the door, fifteen minutes left. She began to scan the class, her eyes drifting from one classmate to another until she landed on an empty desk two rows over, Peter's desk. She let out the breath she didn't know she'd been holding and her stomach dropped. She'd been unconsciously hoping he'd be sitting there, that the newspaper had only been part of an unconscious dream. But the seat was empty, no Peter, and the nightmare was still real.

"Manny," Mia shouted shaking her shoulder to pull her from her reverie. "Come on, the bell's rung we need to get to gym."

She shook her head gathering up her books and quickly shoving them into her bag. "Daydreaming," Manny chuckled in explanation. "I've really got to stop that."

Mia smiled lightly. "Anyone I know," she asked as the two girls made their way out of the classroom.

"No," Manny lied.

**-0-0-**

That night Manny lay in bed tossing and turning. An image of Peter with gaping wounds oozing blood kept flashing behind her closed eyelids. She woke with a start on more than one occasion. But this last time had little to do with her nightmares and more to do with the taping noise that came from her window.

Her heart thudded against her rib cage as she slowly eased the cover's back and climbed out of bed. She padded her way over to the window her foot steps silent on the carpet underneath them. Shaking she eased the curtains back a fearful gasp escaping her throat at the sight of Peter on the other side of the glass. She was still dreaming that was the only explanation for the hallucination in front of her.

"Manny, let me in," the mirage whispered seductively his smile glowing in the darkness like a lighthouse beckoning home lost ships.

Her eyes dropped to the ground four stories below and then back up to Peter who was suspended in mid air. She tried to close her gaping mouth but the wire in her brain that made actions happen didn't seem to be firing properly.

"Come on, Manny," Peter coaxed. "You know you want to."

The evil, seductive smile curled the corner of his lips once again and as if in a trance Manny's hand reached for the window latch. She shivered as a gust of wind rushed in covering her skin in a layer of goose bumps. But she didn't flinch her eyes were locked on Peter's which were now a molten black instead of a fiery red. She could feel herself getting lost in them, drowning in their depths. She swallowed roughly stepping back to allowing him in. The absurdness of the situation, the unrealistic way Peter hovered about the ground didn't seem to matter.

"You've got to invite me in," he practically whispered.

"Sorry," she replied motioning him in. "Please, come in," she added when he still hadn't budged.

He smiled, golden flecks speckling his irises as he floated through the opened window. He reached out, the tip of his icy finger gliding across her cheek and causing her to shiver. A horse chuckle escaped the back of his throat but the breath that hit her face wasn't warm or comforting. His finger slide down her jaw, tracing her heart beat as it pulsed through the vein in her neck.

"I'm going to kiss you," he offered stepping closer so that the only thing between them was the thin layers of clothes they both wore.

Peter tilted his head, his icy breath tickling her neck as his lips grazed her skin. She closed her eyes, fighting off the convulsion that threatened her spine. She could hear her own heart beat echoing in her ears, feel it pumping the blood through her entire body. Her senses were heightened, on edge as he slid his lips even lower, a soft kiss before the piercing pain of sharp teeth breaking through flesh.

And then she woke up a scream escaping the back of her throat. Her hand shot up to her neck, to the lingering cold of a dead man's kiss. Her finger's coated in a sticky liquid and she quickly pulled them away, deep red glistened in the moonlight streaming through her partially opened window. The metallic smell hit her nose and caused her stomach to growl, an insatiable hunger washing over her. She knew in that instant that she hadn't been mistaken, she'd seen Peter not alive but not dead either. He was something else and now she was too.


End file.
